LORD, in its primary sense, the head of a household, the master of those dependent on him for their daily bread; the word frequently occurs in this sense in the Bible, cf. Matt. xxiv. 45. As a term implying the ownership of property, "lord" survives in "lord of the manor" and "landlord." The chief applications are due to its use as the equivalent of Lat. dominus, Gr. ta5pcos and Fr. seigneur; thus in the Old Testament it represents Yahweh, Je hovah, and, in the New Testament Ki.)ptos as a title of Jesus Christ. It is not only a general word for a prince or sovereign, but also the common word for a feudal superior, and particularly for a feudal tenant holding directly of the king, a baron (q.v.), hence a peer of the realm, a member of the House of Lords, constituted of the lords temporal and the lords spiritual ; this is the chief modern usage. The prefix "lord" is ordinarily used as a less formal alter native to the full title, whether held by right or by courtesy, of marquess, earl or viscount, and is always so used in the case of a baron (which in English usage is generally confined to the holder of a foreign title). Where the name is territorial the "of" is dropped, thus the marquess of A., but Lord A. The younger sons
of dukes and marquesses have, by courtesy, the title of Lord pre fixed to the Christian and surname, e.g., Lord John Russell. In the case of bishops, the full and formal title of address is the Lord Bishop of A., whether he be a spiritual peer or not. Many high officials of the British Government have the word "lord" prefixed to their titles ; some of them are treated in separate arti cles : for lord privy seal see PRIVY SEAL. In certain cases the mem bers of a board which has taken the place of an office of State are known as lords commissioners or, shortly, lords of the office in question, e.g., lords of the treasury, civil or naval lords of the admiralty. For lord lieutenant and lord mayor see LIEUTENANT and MAYOR. As the proper form of address, "my lord" is used not only to those members of the nobility to whom the title "Lord" is applicable, and to bishops, but also to all judges of the High Court in England, and of the Scottish and Irish Superior Courts, and to lord mayors and lord provosts (see also FORMS OF ADDRESS). •